Xilam Animation is further boosting the Oggy & the Cockroaches brand into gaming with the appointment of Nazara Technologies.

The mobile gaming company will now launch a raft of new mobile games for younger audiences that underscore the brand values of Oggy & the Cockroaches.

The appointment is the result of a deal brokered via Xilam and its licensing agent, Dream Theatre and will see the first game launch in Q1 2018 in Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Middle East.

This is the latest in an growing digital presence for Oggy & the Cockroaches, a series that has a cult following on Facebook with more than 3.5m fans and 1.2m subscribers on YouTube.

Marc du Pontavice, founder and president of Xilam, said: “Xilam is eager to expand the presence of its properties in the digital domain. Nazara is one of the leaders in the mobile gaming arena and we are thrilled to be working together to take Oggy and his friends to new heights in gaming.

“We are excited to give kids yet another avenue to become immersed in his cheeky world as we celebrate 20 years of Oggy & the Cockroaches.”

Nazara is one of the leading mobile games companies in India’s digital landscape with licensed mobile gaming rights to popular kids’ IPs including Chhota Bheem, Motu Patlu, Mighty Raju, Tinkle characters and Chacha Chouhary.

Manish Agarwal, CEO, Nazara Technologies, added: “With Oggy & the Cockroaches, Nazara will continue to deliver high quality games for the global market.

“We have built a strong portfolio of successful games which have targeted young audiences in India over the last two years and now with the Oggy & the Cockroaches IP, we can reach audiences across emerging markets beyond India by leveraging the global appeal of the show.”

Cartoon Network Asia has already scooped seasons five, six and seven of the series for its channels this year, with previous seasons of the show currently running on Nickelodeon, Youku in China and Netflix Asia Pacific.

In India, Oggy & the Cockroaches currently airs on both Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, as well as on Amazon Prime.

The series is distributed in more than 160 countries around the world and is watched in 600 million homes.

With plans to expand the licensing programme for its popular animated series, Xilam is keen to hear from firms looking to launch a raft of toys across multiple categories in a bid to boost the brand's presence in Europe.